The Aftermath of Snow and Ice That Can Drive You To A Meltdown

It’s been a record-breaking winter for many parts of the country, and as all of that snow and ice begins to melt from rooftops and overhangs, forming fang-like icicles along gutters and dropping icy cold dollops on unsuspecting folks as they come and go, some homeowners are discovering the drip-drip-dripping isn’t just happening outside their homes. 

Germantown, Md.’s Scott Davidson learned the hard way about ice damming a few years ago after a heavy snowfall. “We woke up one morning to find a wet spot had formed on our master bedroom ceiling. It turned out we had ice dammed up there and water had seeped in,” he said. “The downspouts were tubes of solid ice.”

This time, when a record snowstorm hit the area, Davidson followed the advice he’d received from a professional following his leaky ceiling episode and took some precautionary steps. He went out and cleared the snow away from his home’s downspouts, foundation and heat pump, and he heaved it out of his walk-up basement stairwell and basement window wells.

But many homeowners don’t have prior experience to rely on and now are finding water dripping from windows, ceilings and around light fixtures.

A recent blog on washingtonpost.com suggested:

Inside, if water is streaming down the walls, [said Alan Beal, president of Mid-Atlantic Inspection Services in Bethesda, Md.] use a screwdriver to poke a hole or two in the ceiling so that water drains out.

"Water inside your house is never a good thing," said Bill Millholland, executive vice president of Case Design/Remodeling in Bethesda. "There is no easy remedy for it."

Although many people are concerned about the weight of the snow on their roofs, Millholland said, in general, roofs are engineered to handle snow accumulations. It's not worth the risk to attack the snow on them. "People are freaked out their roofs will collapse. It is very unlikely to be an issue, especially now that we are through the worst of it," he said. "It's easier to fix a broken gutter than a broken bone.”

As for Scott Davidson: “So far, so good,” he says. “Every day I see more and more of my roof as the snow melts, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”

Wind Power On Your Rooftop?

Here is an interesting product that came out of the 2010 International Builder’s Show – a wind turbine that mounts directly on the roof of your home. As more and more homeowners turn to clean energy sources to reduce their energy consumption and lower their electricity bills, Honeywell has introduced a rooftop wind turbine that Popular Mechanics magazine calls one of the "10 most brilliant products of 2009.”

The six-foot turbine, which resembles an oversized bicycle wheel with blades attached to its spokes, can be installed on the roof of wood-framed homes and can generate electricity in wind speeds as low as 2 mph. Technology has also made the turbine quieter and less prone to vibration, which were two of the major roadblocks to residential use. Honeywell estimates the turbine would provide “18% of an average household’s (DOE) energy needs.”

The $8,000-$9,000 estimated pricetag (including installation) could be offset by federal and state tax credits and rebates. For more information, visit www.ownyourwind.com.

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Late this past spring we talked about an idea for beating the sagging economy -- growing our own food in our backyards and on our decks, balconies, porches or even sunny windowsills. Many would-be farmers decided to take the challenge when First Lady Michelle Obama made it headline news by planting an organic garden on the lawn of the White House.

So now that the summer is winding down, we were wondering -- how did your garden do?

AHAA's container garden produced a bounty of tomatoes, lettuce, green peppers, tomatillos and herbs. We found that growing our own food -- for a fraction of the cost of buying it at the grocery store -- was not only easy to do, but was even possible with limited outdoor space. You don't need a lawn the size of the White House's -- you don't even need a lawn at all!

Normally gangly branches were easily tied up to stakes to encourage vertical growth, tomatoes flourished in hanging planters that could be suspended from overhangs, and compact shrub varieties produced ample amounts of bite-sized veggies without taking up a lot of room.

And here was an unexpected side effect: It turns out other people like to save money too. We found that the enthusiasm for our experiment was contagious -- neighbors and co-workers got in on the act and we even swapped seeds and seedlings so we could all grow different varieties.

We're saving the seeds from some of our favorite varieties to plant and swap next year (even if the economy has rebounded.) So now we want to hear your success stories!

Get The Best Price on Food: Grow it Yourself

It's mid-May and garden centers and nurseries are bustling as people file out with beautiful trays of colorful annual and perennial flowers that will grace borders, window boxes and terra cotta pots positioned perfectly on front stoops. However, as lovely as these flowers are, there's far more gratification in growing something else you can find at your local garden center, albeit not as pretty (yet) as the begonias and impatiens: vegetables.

In the current economic climate, no time has ever seemed more perfect than now to try your hand at growing your own food. It's surprisingly simple, inexpensive and rewarding -- and you don't need a lot of space to try out your green thumb either.

A good-sized pot (or a small section of soil in your backyard), a bag of potting soil, seeds or seedlings, stakes (if necessary) and some fertilizer can come to less than $20, and you'll be able to reuse some of these items year-to-year. Your local garden center can provide you with all the expertise you need, plus there is a wealth of information on-line. Gardener's Supply Company (www.gardeners.com) has fantastic resources, including a kitchen garden planner.

For folks short on space, there are upside-down planters and deck kits available that come with vegetables specifically bred for container gardening. Squash, tomatoes, peppers, strawberries, beans, peas, potatoes, broccoli, carrots, onions, herbs and salad greens all make wonderful choices for your garden, and not only is it rewarding for you, but for your kids too.  

This summer, we'll follow the progress of the AHAA garden of tomatoes, tomatillos, lima beans, peppers, lettuce, peas and herbs. Some of our plants will go in the ground, some will go in upside-down planters, and most will go in containers that can be used on any balcony, deck or patio. We'll report on our progress periodically throughout the summer, and we hope you'll check in with us and report on your harvest as well.

Best green thumb wishes to all!

Make A Green Change to Your Home for Earth Day

In honor of Earth Day tomorrow, consider doing at least one thing to make your home and lifestyle more “green”. Not only will you reduce your impact on the environment, but you’ll also save yourself some money.

It can be something as simple as changing a few light bulbs in your home to energy efficient bulbs, making sure you turn out lights when you leave a room, or simply unplugging appliances and devices in your home that aren’t currently in use to cut down on the latent power drain.

And trees and shrubs added to your outdoor landscape – strategically positioned to absorb some of the summer heat – can provide shade to your home and reduce cooling costs. Don’t forget that planting your own vegetable or fruit garden will provide you with months of food at significantly lower cost than what you’d pay for it at the grocery store.

If you’re looking for a larger-scale project, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) says that extra insulation in the attic and a new energy-efficient water heater or heating/air conditioning unit are the improvements with the biggest bang for the buck. Applying for the Tax Code Section 25C energy-efficiency credit can return up to $500 of the cost of each project.

NAHB also says that Tax Code Section 25D credit is available for 30 percent of the cost of qualified solar-, wind- and geothermal-powered renewable energy units, and that there are state and city programs that tack on additional incentives. Finally, don’t forget that $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers, which can be used to add green upgrades to new homes that will reduce energy bills for years to come.
 
Learn about the energy efficiency tax incentives at www.nahb.org/efficiencytaxcredit.  Find links to additional state and local incentives for renewable energy at www.dsireusa.org. Get the details of the $8,000 new home credit for first-time buyers at www.federalhousingtaxcredit.org. And get the facts on green building and remodeling at www.nahbgreen.org.

In the comments section, tell us what you've done to make your home and lifestyle more "green".